28/05/2024
GOVERNMENT DOUBLES GRANTS TO SCHOOLS TO SUPPORT FREE EDUCATION POLICY
Zambian Government has increased grants to schools in order to support education for all policy.
Acting Minister of Education, Hon. Felix Mutati, who is Minister of Technology and Science, disclosed that Government has doubled the amount of grants to schools in an effort to help with operations.
Hon. Mutati disclosed this during the launch of the Building Strong Foundations Initiative by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), to promote health and well-being for the benefit of learners aged 5 to12 in primary schools.
The Acting Minister of Education said Government took the decision to increase the grants in order to ensure that all schools have enough resources to fully implement the education for all policy, adding that all schools now receive their grants at the same time.
"We send the grants to all schools at the same time and according to size of the school or number of children contained. We increased the grant because we want to have an efficient education system," he said.
The “Building Strong Foundations” initiative aimed at ensuring that all children receive foundational education that equip them with basic literacy and numeracy skills, as well as laying the foundation for health, well-being, and social development for life, was launched at an international symposium held on Thursday, May 23, 2024, at Ciera Resort in Lusaka, Zambia.
The objective of the "Building Strong Foundations" initiative is to help children stay in school, keep safe, and grow up healthy to lead thriving lives.
At the same symposium and under the Building strong foundations umbrella, four joint technical briefs, produced by UNESCO and the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) were also launched.
These provide evidence-based guidance to ministries of education, curriculum developers, policymakers, school management, educators and other stakeholders.
Further, the minister indicated that, in order to motivate teachers, salaries are also paid on time so that teachers have disposable income for their usage.
Meanwhile, Hon. Mutati has revealed that Government is working on reducing the teacher-pupil ratio from the current 1 teacher to 70 pupils to 1 teacher to 45 pupils.
He said the reduction is being done to ensure that pupils have more attention from their teachers, which will in turn improve learning.
"We want teachers to attend to fewer pupils so that there is feedback and concentration in class," he said.
According to him, primary school education is paramount for children's development and fulfillment, stating that it is during these formative years that children acquire essential literacy and numeracy skills.
He stressed that it is during the formative years that children acquire essential literacy and numeracy skills, adding that to effectively nurture the skills, it is critical to approach early years' numeracy and literacy in a fun, engaging, and age-appropriate manner.
And UNESCO Assistant-Director General for Education Stefania Giannini observed that children who receive good quality education are more likely to be healthy, and those who are healthy are better able to learn.
She emphasised the need for more robust action and investment in education, starting early in primary school.
Ms. Giannini believes that the primary school period of life is a window of opportunity to build a sound understanding of health and well-being and strong foundations for the future.
“This initiative aims to ensure that all children receive foundational education that not only equips them with basic literacy and numeracy skills but also lays a foundation for health, well-being, and social development for life while having positive effects on learners' grades, test scores, attendance, and homework completion,” said Ms. Giannini.
Meanwhile, UNICEF’s Director, Education and Adolescent Development, Robert Jenkins, stressed that under the banner of building strong foundations, the joint technical briefs provide evidence-based guidance to ministries of education, curriculum developers, policymakers, school management, educators, and other stakeholders.
Mr. Jenkins underlines the importance of the school as a key entry point to fulfill the holistic needs of a child.
"Every child deserves to learn, grow, and thrive in a safe environment. The school is a key entry point to fulfill the holistic needs of a child, including nutrition, health, psychosocial, and other critical development needs beyond education," said Robert Jenkins.
He added that interventions during the early years of a child's life have an incredible long-term impact, laying the foundation for lifelong success in the education system and beyond.
In context - although 87 percent of children globally now attend and complete primary education, it is not enough, as the current situation would leave 15 million children aged below 11 behind in sub-Saharan Africa alone, none of whom would ever go to school. This represents 9 million girls (23 percent) and 6 million boys (19 percent).
Sadly, between 35 percent and 65 percent of girls do not have adequate knowledge or understanding of menstruation when they start their menstrual cycle globally.
Due to a lack of knowledge, the East and Southern African regions have one of the world’s highest rates of adolescent pregnancy, with one in five girls becoming pregnant before the age of 20.
HIV also remains a challenge in the region, with 930,000 children below the age of 14 living with HIV and 58,000 new yearly infections.
By reaching learners early, prevention of new HIV infections and treatment opportunities can increase.
Despite significant progress towards achieving universal primary education, however, many children personally still face various challenges that hinder their development and well-being.
Some of the challenges include poor health and nutrition, where many children lack access to basic healthcare and nutrition, leading to malnutrition, anemia, and other health problems.
Violence and abuse also pose a threat to the lives of children. Many children worldwide experience violence and abuse at home, in school, or in their communities, leading to physical and emotional harm.
Further, lack of access to safe and trusted environments makes children vulnerable to harm and exploitation, as limited access to education leads to limited opportunities and future prospects, especially for a girl child.
Launching the Building strong foundations initiative in Lusaka builds on UNESCO’s regional work in education for health and well-being through the Our Rights, Our Lives, Our Future (O3) programme, which is currently the largest programme supporting education for health and well-being of children, adolescents and young people running across 33 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
It harnesses the power of inter-sectoral coordination between education and health sectors to improve sexual and reproductive health, gender, and education outcomes for young people.
In Zambia, following on from the launch, UNESCO will look to implement this initiative through various strategies, including building the capacity of teachers, school administrators, and healthcare providers to promote health and well-being in primary school children.
Moreover, there is a need for curriculum that will incorporate health and well-being of children and promote literacy and numeracy skills.
Other means include engaging with communities to promote health and well-being and prevent violence and abuse, as well as collaboration with governments, NGOs, and other stakeholders to promote health and well-being among primary school children.
In conclusion, the "Building strong foundations" initiative and related briefs are crucial steps towards promoting health and well-being in primary school children.
Ends….
By Joseph Banda
Ministry of Information and Media
Lusaka
